Conclusions and Assumptions
by suzie2b
Summary: Sometimes we just can't help it.


**Disclaimer:** _ **The Rat Patrol**_ **is not my property. They come out to play sometimes, then I send them home.**

 **Conclusions and Assumptions**

 **By Suzie2b**

 **All Tully saw when he walked into the motor pool was Hitch hitting the ground next to the jeep. In a flash he was at his friend's side, pushing away the guy standing over Hitch with a 1x8 foot board. "What the heck are you doing, Darryl?" Tully dropped down next to Hitch, who had just gotten shakily to his hands and knees, and put a hand on his back. "Take it easy. Just sit still for a minute."**

 **Private Darryl Carlyle said, "I'm sorry. I didn't see him there…"**

 **Tully was on his feet again and got right up in Carlyle's face. "I'm not so sure it was an accident!"**

 **The private dropped the board, ready to defend himself, and said, "It was … I swear I didn't know he was standing there!"**

 **Others started to gather around, expecting a fight, when a hand clamped down on Tully's shoulder and Hitch said, "Stop, Tully. He didn't hit me on purpose."**

 **Tully turned and quickly steadied his dazed friend. "Are you sure?" He carefully backed Hitch up to the jeep. "I saw you go down and he was standing over you…"**

 **Hitch sat down in the passenger seat as he touched the tender spot on the side of his head. "I'd just walked up. Darryl had his back to me as he picked up that 1x8. He started turning and I saw it coming out of the corner of my eye, but couldn't get out of the way in time."**

 **Darryl said sincerely, "I'm really sorry, Mark. You going to be okay?"**

" **I'll be fine, Darryl. Don't worry about it."**

 **The private picked up his lumber and walked quickly away. The rest went back to what they'd been doing, a little disappointed that the incident hadn't gone to blows.**

 **Tully watched them go for a second, then turned back to Hitch. "You sure you're okay?"**

 **Hitch nodded slowly with a sigh. "Yeah, I'm good. Getting a bit of a headache though."**

 **Tully got aspirin and a canteen. "Here, this should help. Sorry, guess when I saw you on the ground … and he was standing there … I just assumed…"**

 **Hitch swallowed the tablets, then smiled and said, "Well, if he had hit me on purpose I'm glad you were around to help me out."**

 **##################**

 **A few days later, Tully showed up for breakfast sporting a black eye and bruised cheek. He sat down with his food across from Hitch while his friend stared at him with concern and asked, "Who'd you have a fight with?"**

 **Tully sighed as he swallowed two aspirin with coffee. "A door over at headquarters."**

 **Hitch looked at him suspiciously. "A door. And who was swinging it at you?"**

" **No one … I mean, he didn't do it on purpose."**

" **You don't just walk into a door, Tully. You were in a fight, weren't you?"**

 **Tully smiled slightly. "I wasn't in a fight. I was picking up some requisitions so we'd have 'em on hand. I reached for the door handle to leave and it suddenly swung open and caught me in the face."**

 **Hitch still wasn't convinced. "Who hit you?"**

" **No one hit me, Hitch. It was the door."**

" **Yeah, but…"**

 **A young private stopped at their table. "How's the face, Tully?"**

 **He looked up at the other man. "Looks worse than it is, Kevin."**

" **I'm sorry we tangled. No hard feelings?"**

 **Tully nodded. "Don't worry about it. We're good."**

 **When they were alone again, Hitch said quietly, "Look, Tully, you and Kevin Deacon aren't exactly friends. If he hit you…"**

" **Hitch, he didn't hit me."**

" **But he just said you two 'tangled'."**

 **Tully sighed and tried not to get aggravated. "Listen to me. There wasn't a fight. Kevin was walking into the office the same time I was going out. He opened the door. I ran into it. End of story."**

 **Hitch frowned. "Okay … but if you want me to have a talk with him just let me know."**

 **Tully smiled a little. "Thanks, buddy, but that won't be necessary."**

 **##################**

 **The next day, the Rat Patrol were out scouting around an allied held sector. They stopped for lunch, and while the others were eating Tully stood watch on the hill above them.**

 **It wasn't too long before Moffitt walked up and stopped next to him with two boxes of K-rations. "Would you prefer the meat or cheese for lunch?"**

 **Tully smiled and swapped the machine gun he was holding for the meat ration. "Thanks, sarge."**

" **You appeared to be brooding as I walked up here. Everything all right?"**

 **Tully sat down on a rock and opened the box. "Yeah. I was just thinking about what's happened with Hitch and me lately."**

 **Moffitt looked out at the desert with a smile. "Care to talk about it?"**

 **Tully used the small metal key to open the canned meat. "Well, you know about Hitch's bump on the head and my black eye, right?"**

" **Yes. I hear they were both accidents."**

" **They were … but I was just thinking that in both instances Hitch and I jumped to conclusions about what had happened."**

 **Moffitt glanced at Tully as he spread the meat product on a cracker and put it in his mouth. "Oh? How so?"**

 **Tully chewed and swallowed. "I walked into the motor pool that day and saw Hitch on the ground and Carlyle standing there with a board in his hands. I assumed he's clocked Hitch with it and nearly got into a fight to defend him." He stopped to take another bite of food, then continued, "Then I walked into that door over at headquarters. Hitch thought that, since Deacon and I aren't real friendly with each other, that we'd been in a fight. Why do we do that?"**

" **Do what exactly?"**

" **We assume that something has happened that the other doesn't want to own up to. Hitch didn't want me to fight Carlyle so he said it was an accident, which it was. And Hitch was upset when he thought I wasn't admitting to being in a fight, which I wasn't."**

 **Moffitt smiled. "I don't believe there's a clear answer to that, Tully. However, if I were to take a guess, I would think, in cases like this anyway, we tend to jump to conclusions out of concern for one another. You were both worried when the other was injured. You both became protective and were willing to fight for the other. We're all friends here. We take care of each other. Troy and I would most likely have reacted to those situations the same way you and Hitch did."**

 **Tully finished off the last of his meat and crackers. "Huh, that does make sense. We did react the way we did out of concern."**

 **Troy walked up the hill and joined them. "Tully, if you're done eating I want you and Hitch to check over the jeeps before we head out again."**

 **Tully nodded and started putting the remains of his lunch back in the box. "Right, sarge."**

 **After the private had gone to join Hitch at the jeeps, Troy said to Moffitt, "Looks like you two were having quite a discussion."**

 **Moffitt smiled and said, "Yes. It had to do with what's happened the last few days between Tully and Hitch, and jumping to conclusions."**

 **Troy chuckled. "Sounds familiar. Hitch and I were just having the same conversation."**

" **What did you tell him?"**

" **I told him it happens because the four of us are close and we care about each other like brothers. I mentioned that you and I would've reacted the same way if it'd been us."**

 **Moffitt nodded. "That's essentially what I told Tully. He said it made sense."**

 **Troy grinned. "Hitch said the same thing."**

 **##################**

 **Down at the jeeps Tully pulled the water can out of the back to fill the radiators while Hitch checked the oil. He looked up at the two sergeants and said, "What do you think they're talking about?"**

 **Hitch looked at Troy and Moffitt. "Probably us."**

" **Think we're in some kind of trouble?"**

" **I don't remember doing anything that would make them mad at us."**

 **As they looked up at the sergeants, Troy and Moffitt looked down at the two privates.**

 **Tully went back to work and said, "Let's not jump to any conclusions."**


End file.
